Did the demo yesterday. Turned out as a bit of a palava/fiasco based item in the end.

Studio had very dry acoustics and a not very good PA, just as I had remembered... and the engineer... well, he was "interesting". Earned his money and put in the hours, sure. But his mixing and general people skills left a little to be desired. Told us to "chill out" because we were having a joke argument. Plus he wore an army helmet during the mix. For no apparent reason and, most preturbingly, without any humour based motivations. I think he'd had his sense of humour gland removed surgically.

It didn't help matters that we were all feeling the pressure a little bit. After all, this is the first time we've properly 'demoed' any of our songs, outside of home recordings and the 'Flames In The Back Row' studio session last July!!! Our expectations are so high of these songs and this album that I don't think any of us were mentally prepared for the reality check of a rushed recording job in a distinctly average studio. We all think of and hear our stuff in technicolour, in the way it will sound when we record it properly. We don't hear it as raw and rushed, so it was a bit of a shock to the system I guess. A much needed one though (silver lining, yeah?) - cos as flawed as the demo is, its highlighted which songs shine through even the worst context and which ones still need a bit of tweaking over the next couple of weeks.

It also didnt help that I awoke yesterday morning with a twinging throat, tight chest and croaky voice. Typical. So doing vocals - 10 songs in an hour and a half no less - was a bit of strain. I felt utterly drained afterward, and to not much of an end given that my actual peformance was below par thanks to the throat drama.

Nevertheless, I am remaining philiosophical about things... A shitty demo is a rite of passage before you record properly. Makes you see your material at its worst, at its most vulnerable and raw... warts and all. And thus, the band is granted a kick up the ass in terms of focus and motivation to improve. Certainly wards off the demon known as Complacency and puts a spiked whoopee cushion on our laurels. I think it will, in the grand scheme of things, help us make a better album.

So in one sense - to come completely full circle - the demo has been a total success. And I think our album will be even better for having recorded it.

Must dash, off to see Architects play in Brighton with Johnny Truant, Centurion and The Ghost Of A Thousand!

x